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MESSAGE FROM MR. WAGNER AND MR. MALLETTE

UNITED WE LEARN! Celebrate! The welcome back letter to school is here! With that said, I understand the question the majority of us are thinking, “Where did the

summer go?” As usual the summer finds us in a state of euphoria. I believe that is why it goes by so fast. As the days officially get shorter the joyful sounds of the school year start knocking on the door. Traditionally, when someone or metaphorically is knocking on the door we open the door with a greeting. Officially this is me knocking on the door to each and every one of you. I sure hope everyone opens the door with a polite greeting and smile…=). Welcome to the 2021-22 school year!

There are two important themes I am going to carry over from last year in my welcome back message. No, it’s not temp checks or lunch in the classrooms. Actually it is team approach and opportunities. Life is full of opportunity. Speaking of knocking on the door. I must admit the knocks were loud and interrupting, but the opportunities that were behind those knocks intentionally encouraged personal/team growth. At the time of the metaphorical knocks we found ourselves in an internal battle to do what is best for our students. Honestly, that internal struggle was very challenging to ensure our team was coming together during a time of chaos. However, those knocks on the door are not going away. We all have

WELCOME BACK EDITION JULY 19, 2021

Fort Calhoun Elementary “Life doesn’t get easier or more forgiving; WE get stronger and more resilient.”

-Steve Maraboli Engaging + Learning + Achieving = Productive PIONEERS!

TEAM APPROACH

Welcome New Family/Staff

Members!

Jessica Fleischman -Preschool Teacher-

Brooke Jones -First Grade-

Kayla Johanek -Sixth Grade-

Delaney Appel -Special Education-

TBD -Paraprofessional-

TBD -Paraprofessional-

Reminders! *AUGUST 12: FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL; 11:15AM DISMISSAL

SCHOOL GOALS

ADOPT A NEW ENGLISH

LANGUAGE ARTS PROGRAM

IMPLEMENT OUR NEWLY ADOPTED

SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING PROGRAM

ELIMINATING LEARNING GAPS

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heard the good old saying, when opportunity knocks you listen and open the door. We don’t know what is behind that door. What we do know is we are going to work harder and smarter with learning from our experiences. Remember opportunity continues to be a life long learners journey. My staff is a role model of this statement. My hopes, as your leader (near or far), we take the time to absorb these opportunities TOGETHER! Positive or negative…No matter what! I know our school theme this coming year is United We Learn. When we are united we will prosper together. The fact of the matter is if we don’t work together this year we will not prosper or maximize our environment for students or our environment. It’s time to maximize our talents and continue to work hard. The opportunities for US to succeed depend on our trust and positive outlook! Do we want to be GREAT OR OUTSTANDING? We decide that outcome together. I look forward to seeing you all soon.

-A quick message from your interim principal, PJ Mallette:

Greetings! I hope you all are having a great summer! As we are gearing up for the 2021-22 school year, I wanted to reach out and tell those who don't know me, a little bit about myself. As most of you know, I will be the interim principal for this school year starting in September. I have been at Fort Calhoun for the past eight years in a variety of roles, most recently I have held the positions of HAL (High-ability learners) Coordinator and Behavioral Interventionist. I’m thrilled to work in a new capacity this year while looking at the school from a different lens. My intention is to support students, staff, and families during this interim period. Our focus is student success and I want to ensure that by building relationships with families and creating a two-way street of communication. With that being said, I want to personally welcome everyone to the 2021-22 school year! I look forward to seeing you at Back to School Night.

GO PIONEERS! JULY 19, 2021

UPCOMING EVENTS FOR 2021-22 SCHOOL YEAR

-August 11: Back To School Night; 5-7pm

-August 12: First day of school (K-6); 11:15pm dismissal

-August 16: First day of preschool

-September 1: Picture Day

-September 14: 5th/6th grade Parent Band Meeting

-September 17: Walk-a-thon

-September 24: Homecoming Parade

-October 15/18-21: Book Fair

-October 20 & 21: Parent/Teacher Conferences

-October 22: No School

-November 18: Thanksgiving Feast

-November 24: Early dismissal; 1:15pm

-November 25 & 26: No school

-December 9: Winter Music program

-December 22-31; January 3-5: No School

Happy New Year-2022!

-January 5: Teacher In-service day

-January 6: School Resumes

-February 16 & 17: Parent/Teacher Conferences; 1:15pm dismissal both days

-February 18: No School

-March 9: Talent Show

-March 10: Teacher In-service day

-March 10 & 11: No School

-March 18: Malcolm Band Contest

-April 14: Spring Music program

-April 15 & 18: No School

-May 17: Last day of school

-May 18: Staff In-service day

*All dates are subject to change!

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Free Lunch Program Information

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We are excited to announce that hot breakfast and lunches will be free once again this school year. Please keep in mind the first lunch or breakfast is free. If your student decides to get seconds then they must pay for it. Additionally, students that bring a cold lunch from home and decide to get a milk that student will be charged for that milk. If you have any questions please contact our office. Thank you!

Communication Platforms

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The school strives to ensure there is adequate communication during every school year. There are several different avenues the school will communicate with you. Please see below.

*District’s website, District’s Facebook page, Elementary twitter account, School messenger (Email, text and phone call), Newsletters, Seesaw, Canvas, Staff email, Thursday folders (digital), and the good old fashion marquee…=).

To assist us with this process please ensure your contact information is current in powerschool. If any of your information changes please contact the office. Lastly, we will be using each of these platforms to communicate with you throughout the school year.

Handbook Updates __________________________________________

At this time we would like to update you on any changes/updates to the elementary handbook that you should be aware of. Please remember the Parent/Student Handbook is intended to provide communication guidelines for a transparent process and of course keeping our environment safe for all.

*Pg. 35. Notice of Non-Discrimination. The change here was an updated wording of the policy.

*Pg. 53. The change here was the addition of the policy Title IX into the handbook.

Preschool Program Information

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The first day of preschool will be Monday, August 16. Morning preschool class is from 8:00-11:15am and afternoon preschool class is from 11:50-3:05pm. Before school begins, you will need to bring a copy of your child’s birth certificate and current immunization records. The first tuition payment is due on or before August 1st. Tuition payments are due on the 20th of each month beginning in September. The monthly tuition rate at this time is $140. We look forward to seeing you soon. Thank you for choosing us.

Morning Drop Off __________________________________________

*K-1st Grade: Students will line up in front of the building.

*2nd Grade: Students will line up at the second grade door.

*3rd-4th Grade: Students will line up at the third grade entrance off of Adams Street.

5th-6th Grade: Students will line up at the sixth grade entrance off of 10th Street.

**There will be a staff member at each entrance.

**There will be a staff member on duty at 7:30am in front of the school building.

**During inclement/cold weather students will come into the building as soon as they are

dropped off.

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You’re INVITED: WELCOME BACK NIGHT!When: AUGUST 11; 5-7PM

Where: FORT CALHOUN ELEMENTARY Why: Kick off the 2021-22 School year

What to bring: YOUR SCHOOL SUPPLIES and A POSITIVE ATTITUDE Who is all going to be there: STAFF,

PARENTS/GUARDIANS, PRINCIPAL, AND ESPECIALLY STUDENTS.

*This is a great night to introduce yourself to your new teacher. We look forward to showing off the recent building updates. Please come by and visit.

Summary map of pick up/drop off *This map is a quick summary of the traffic flow for pick up and drop off. Please be patient during this change once again. We are looking to get back to our normal routine this year with this process.

*Preschool families. Please note the major change in traffic flow due to the relocation of the program. Please utilize 10th Street to park for drop off and pick up.

*K-2nd Grade. The pick up/drop off will be the same as the following years. If you prefer to have your older child (3rd-6th grade) come up to get picked up in the K-2nd pick up lane please contact the office. Thank you!

*3rd-6th Grade. Adams Street traffic should not interfere with the bus lane. Cars may queue behind the bus lane for pick up. Once the buses have left the bus lane the traffic may flow forward to pick up your student.

**IMPORTANT. THIS IS AN ANTICIPATED PLAN. IT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE TO ENSURE SAFETY FOR ALL.